I’m in the midst of a bunch of review projects and besides that I’ve already done a video review of Bell’s Oracle (an aged and a fresh bottle vertical, no less!) but when the newest batch came out I figured it was worth doing a quick text review.

Plus, check out that batch number (with date)! I’m drinking this bottle about five days old. Which makes this pretty much a must-buy for me.

Pours dark orange, very transparent, with a fair amount of carbonation coming from the bottom of the glass and a thick white head. Head dissipates fairly quickly, but leaves significant lacing. Aroma is mostly pine, very verdant almost like a Christmas tree (which gives me a homebrew idea: a big piney black IPA with Christmas spices marketed as a winter warmer). Some hints of grapefruit and pineapple but buried deep. Hints of sweet malt.

Taste is much more heavy on the grapefruit, with a nice bitter abrasive finish and a very dry aftertaste. Tons of bittering hops in this one, but with a nice flavor addition towards the end. The alcohol is ridiculously well hidden. As the beer warms the grapefruit sweetness becomes more prominent, almost sticky.

I’ve long been of the opinion that this is better than Hopslam, and getting a super-fresh bottle just makes me more certain of it. I’m absolutely looking forward to drinking the other five bottles very soon.